


Sweetest

by afterandalasia



Series: Femslash Yuletide 2014 [8]
Category: Frozen (2013), Princess and the Frog (2009)
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1840s, Arendelle, Christmas, Cooking, Crossover Pairings, F/F, Femslash Yuletide 2014, Lesbian Elsa, Post-Frozen (2013)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-08
Updated: 2014-12-08
Packaged: 2018-02-28 16:03:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2738531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afterandalasia/pseuds/afterandalasia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tiana's Place is widely acknowledged to be the best restaurant in town. There's no other place that Elsa would think of going to arrange for her sister's birthday.</p><p> </p><p>Written for Femslash Yuletide Day Eight, "Sweets and Treats".</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sweetest

**Author's Note:**

> Accidentally taken from the 2013 prompts. Like a boss.
> 
> Confectionery restaurants really existed! Check out [this article](http://restaurant-ingthroughhistory.com/2011/05/18/confectionery-restaurants/) for a really interesting look at their history. In the 1840s, when Frozen is set, they would have been absolutely cutting-edge, and highly fashionable.
> 
> Using Sweet for Tiana's surname is something which I've seen around a few times, with or without the headcanon that she's related to Sweet from Atlantis: the Lost Empire. Personally, I just like how it sounds.

"Trust me," said the woman, "your sister will _love_ this."  
  
Elsa wasn't sure whether she was more impressed by the woman herself or by her cooking. Tiana Sweet, owner of what was generally considered the finest confectionery restaurant in Arendelle, did not seem in the least bit concerned that the Queen of Arendelle was in her kitchen in the quiet hours before the luncheon rush, nor that there were guards lingering by the door in the name of Elsa's protection.  
  
Come the evening, Elsa knew, Tiana would be at the front of house, in a fine dress and talking with the patrons of the restaurant. But for now, the woman was wearing clothes that were dusted with sugar, and had her hair scraped back from her face. The kitchen was already hot, bread and cakes baking in great ovens, and Tiana was smiling as she bustled about.  
  
"The recipe _is_ a secret," continued Tiana, "but suffice to say that chocolate is definitely involved."  
  
"Well, that should do it, then," said Elsa.  
  
Tiana wrapped towels around her hands and opened one of the big ovens, leaning out of the way of the billow of steam. She withdrew the tray of fluffy pastry pieces and slid them carefully onto the side. "Trust me, you ain't lived till you've tried the St. James' Cake."  
  
"Is that baklava?" said Elsa, watching as Tiana started to arrange the pastry on a turntable cake stand.  
  
Tiana gave her a playful look and walked over to the large refrigeration unit and drew out a large bowl. "Ah ah," she said, "secret recipe."  
  
Unable to help it, Elsa laughed. There was something truly charming about the way that Tiana spoke to her so bluntly, so unafraid. Her guards shifted uncomfortably, but that might have been partially to do with how hot it was in the room. Elsa was markedly grateful for her icy dress. "My apologies," she said, but kept watching as Tiana spread some sort of cream over the dessert, then added another layer of the pastry. "Did you learn this in your time in Europe?"  
  
"I learnt some," said Tiana. The layers kept on building, "but it was my daddy who designed this. He said that one day, in his restaurant, this would be the finest dessert on the menu."  
  
That had, of course, been part of the appeal or the restaurant. Tiana was not an Arendellen native, so the story went; nobody was quite sure what her home kingdom had been, but she was friends with the Royal Family of Maldonia and had spent quite some time travelling around Europe. She spoke several languages, and her bill of fare was available in all of them. Her Arendellen, though accented, was flawless.  
  
"It certainly looks like it will be," Elsa replied.  
  
She watched, impressed just with the showmanship of it, as Tiana arranged whatever layers she was putting together, used chocolate frosting to coat the sides, and spun the cake without a hint of fear to flourish icing sugar onto the top. Despite the terrible mental images she found herself faced with of the cake falling apart, she knew that she had to bow to the fact that Tiana knew what she was doing.  
  
It seemed to take no time at all before the cake was arrayed, and Tiana stopped the spinning with one firm finger. There was a glow in her eyes, a look of pride that Elsa half-recognised, and a confidence in her air that made Elsa feel a little bit weak at the knees as well. "There," said Tiana. "One St. James' Cake, all ready for tasting."  
  
"Oh," said Elsa, looking round. "This isn't the one for my sister?"  
  
"It's best served fresh," said Tiana. "Before you lose the hot and cold. And the party ain't for a week, right?"  
  
"No, it's just before Christmas," Elsa said. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise that this would not be..."  
  
"Don't worry about it. Consider it a test run," said Tiana. Elsa couldn't help the feeling that she was a little bit proud to get to show off her abilities to the Queen, after all. Putting one hand on her hip, Tiana turned to face her. "Would you like to do the honours?"  
  
One of the guards shifted at his post, but Elsa stilled him with a wave of her hand. "If you intend to join me," she said.  
  
Tiana smiled. "Oh, I think I could bring myself to."


End file.
